“Five central banks have interconnected their instant payment systems, creating a framework for faster and more affordable cross-border payments globally.

These include the central banks of India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.”

CLICK THE LINK TO WATCH THE SHORT VIDEO- VERY INFORMATIVE

While watching the video remember that Ripple is a member of the BIS cross-border Payments interoperability and Extention (PIE) taskforce.

@ Newshounds News™

Read and See more:  Twitter

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IRAQ RESUMES NEGOTIATIONS TO JOIN WTO

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi Minister of Trade, Atheer Al-Ghurairi, declared on Monday that discussions to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) had resumed after more than a 16-year break.

A statement issued by the Trade Ministry revealed that Iraqi negotiating teams began their preparatory meetings at the WTO’s headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, in preparation for the third meeting that will discuss Iraq’s accession, the Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.

During his participation in the 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO held last February in the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, Al-Ghurairi affirmed that Iraq fulfilled the conditions necessary to become a member of the WTO following the completion of economic reforms and the enhancement of the investment climate.

The Iraqi Trade Minister indicated that Baghdad finalized issues related to goods and services in accordance with the deadlines set for integration into the international trade system.

The Iraqi government expressed interest in joining the WTO after submitting a request to do so in 2004. Iraq needed to be a member of the multilateral international trade system in order to regain its place as a major player in the global economy.

In addition to debating the future of the global trade movement in light of current challenges, Al-Ghurairi said that the conference sends a strong message to the countries of the world about the value of joining this organization.

The Iraqi official added that Iraq is attempting to expand its commercial and economic connections around the world in order to create new opportunities for collaboration.

@ Newshounds News™

Read more:  Iraw News

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Japanese tokenized deposit platform DCJPY starts production testing

DeCurret DCP, the company behind the DCJPY tokenized deposit network, said it has started production testing of the network. It expects to go into production in August. DeCurret runs the Japanese Digital Currency Forum, which has more than a hundred corporate and government participants who are exploring a broad range of applications that use digital currencies for settlement. DeCurret also raised significant funding from several big names, including MUFG, SMBC and SBI Holdings.

However, they are not participants in the first application, which uses on-chain bank deposits to pay for tokenized renewable energy certificates (RECs). The Internet Initiative Japan (IIJ) recently became a member of the Japan Electric Power Exchange (JEPX) to procure RECs on behalf of its data center clients. Now it plans to convert the RECs into digital tokens and settle transactions with tokenized deposits from GMO Aozora Net Bank.

In the future DeCurret DCP wants to expand the application by including electricity retailers, power companies and carbon trading exchanges.

The key benefits of on-chain payment is it eliminates settlement risk because the asset and money exchange simultaneously. Another advantage is automation, with programmability payments enabling a vast range of use cases.

The DCJPY Network consists of two separate blockchains, a Business Zone(s) and a Financial Zone. Only banks are present in the Financial Zone and this is where they tokenize the deposits and the DCJPY transfers actually happen. The transfer of the asset is recorded in the Business Zone. However, so are the instructions to transfer the DCJPY (but not the actual transfer). This requires synchronization between the two blockchain zones. DeCurret DCP uses the Inter-Blockchain Communication Protocol (IBC) from Cosmos.

Meanwhile, a recent DeCurret DCP survey showed a luke warm appetite for digital currencies from enterprises. Out of 100 companies surveyed, 26% aim to use digital currency in one to three years. Just over two thirds of those with plans are members of the Digital Currency Forum.

Japan’s approach to digital currencies
Japan is one of the most advanced economies in terms of legal support for digital currencies. It passed legislation that supports three types of stablecoins. These include two bank related ones – stablecoins backed by bank deposits and third party reserve backed stablecoins where the reserves are managed by trust banks. Hence, in the realm of digital currency, DCJPY faces competition at launch.

@ Newshounds News™

Read more:  Ledger Insights

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BRICS: EVERY AFRICAN COUNTRY PREPARING TO JOIN the ALLIANCE

“Former Ethiopian speaker of the house Agegnehu Teshager revealed that all African countries are interested in joining the BRICS alliance. His statement comes at a time when developing countries are looking to sideline the US dollar and use local currencies.”

“Developing countries are finding the BRICS de-dollarization agenda lucrative as the initiative can boost their native economies and local currencies. ”

““Africa is a great potential for BRICS, most African countries have an appetite to be a member of the alliance,” he said. The former speaker continued, “Africa’s economy is developing and the continent is interested in the BRICS alliance.”  

“Ethiopia is the new entrant in the BRICS alliance and is the second African nation apart from South Africa to be a part of the grouping. The bloc might invite many other countries during the 16th summit and expand the alliance in 2024. However, there is no clear information on which countries might receive the invitation.”

NOTE: JUST BECAUSE A COUNTRY EXPRESSES INTEREST IN BECOMING A MEMBER OF BRICS DOESN’T MEAN THEY ARE AUTOMATICALLY A MEMBER. THERE IS A PROCESS TO MEMBERSHIP..

@ Newshounds News™

Read more:  Watcher Guru

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Cardano (ADA) Price Surges 40% as $240M TVL and Ethereum ETFs Emerge Bullish Catalysts

Cardano (ADA) has experienced a significant price surge, trading at $0.44, up 40% over the last ten days, fueled by several internal and external factors that are generating renewed investor interest and optimism.

Cardano Price Crosses $0.45 First Time in 10-Days

After having dropped to historic lows on Friday July 5, a positive shift in the US macroeconomic environment has provided a favorable backdrop for ADA’s recent rebound phase.  Positive Non-Farm Payroll (NFP) and Consumer Price Index (CPI) data have bolstered investor confidence in the economic outlook, supporting the overall cryptocurrency market.

Furthermore, the anticipation of Ethereum ETFs expected to launch soon has spilled over into the altcoin market, including Cardano, as investors look for promising opportunities beyond Bitcoin and Ethereum.

@ Newshounds News™

Read more:  Crypto Recaps